doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com 1885's Winchester vs. Browning

Can anyone tell me the differences in these two rifles? Is one significantly better quality?

hi ho gregsy,

the big diff is, one is a winchester, the other is a repro with more parts. the winchesters have been winning for a long time. howsomever, the brownings are very accurate.

as far as accuracy or quality, take your pick, it's a wash.

..ttfn..grampa..
PS.. the win prices are climbing, quickly..

Are the Winchesters made in the US still?

The only commonality is the similarity of the external conformation.
Those of us who appreciate the original Winchester actions/rifles have little good to say about the modern Browning/Win version.
Those who enjoy the modern versions have little interest in the old cartridges and sights of the original rifles.
My advise on the new ones: do not disassemble without experience.

I don't think there's any difference between the two if you're talking modern, but originals; heck yes!

hi ho sdh,

i was trying my best to be kind..

..ttfn..grampa.


greg... PS.. nope they are being made in japland. soon only the oldtimers will remember when the name winchester ment something.

How bout the Uberti High Wall, is it more like a real Winchester than the not so well liked Jap-land high Walls ?. I bought this Uberti awhile back in 45-70, serial number 16, has no import markings, just has Uberti and 45-70 marked on the 30 inch full octagon barrel, though it was odd that there are no markings on the receiver other that the serial number, only shot it a few times so it's still like new, shot nice but I now have a recoil problem so don't use it, does anyone think the quality is good enough to have it re-done into a low recoil Schuetzen Rifle like a 32-40 or a 32 Miller ?.
S-T

ST:

There is really nothing wrong with the Browning. It is what it is: a modern single shot action that looks more or less like a Winchester 1885.

Whilst I have never had a Uberti apart, I have handled one and they seem to be pretty nice actions. Near as I can tell it uses the basic Winchester design, with some minor changes I don't entirely understand. I think the action would build up into a good Schuetzen rifle. Then again, if you were looking at a new barrel and stock, you might be better served selling the rifle and buying an original action. For better or worse, we all like the origninals.

Glenn

I'd like an original, too, but my wallet doesn't. I try to keep ny big dollars (?!) for Parkers.

I'll also note I will more than likely never, ever go inside the gun....I can't see it breaking on me given the little I'll shoot it. So does it matter if it is complex or hard to fix? Probably not.

Is there something about the action that will cause me to despise the gun, i.e. it sticks or pinches my hand or?

S-T, I agree with Glenn's comments and have some of my own regarding the Uberti action. I first encountered the Uberti high wall around 10 years ago, long before the issue of the present rifle, and was kinda favorably impresssed.

The Italian engineers, for whatever reasons, always seem to want to 'improve' a design to the point where it's almost unusable when compared to the original. Well, they did the same thing here but the results aren't quite as bad as some others. The major concern I found with the Uberti was the shape of the firing pin nose; in two of the three examples examined, the noses were slightly too long and too pointed for my comfort so I shortened and rounded them. Otherwise the actions were completely safe and appeared to be very well made with square corners and flat flats although a bit more (completely unnecessarily) complicated than the originals IMO. I would not hesitate to use a Uberti if I couldn't find an original.

To put this into a slightly better perspective for you, my initial examination was conducted at the behest of Rick Sanborn, the head honcho of Green Mountain barrels, as a comparison between the Uberti high wall and an early Pedersoli roller action. There was some sort of deal in the works where GM would supply several hundred barrels to go with another party's actions, and the action choice was still up in the air at that time. My opinion was most emphatic; that particular Pedersoli product was inferior and the Uberti product was much the better of the two and IMO would be fine as long as the firing pin nose shape was monitored closely. I later barreled one in 45-90 for GMs SHOT show exhibit that year.

I hasten to add that that particular early Pedersoli roller design, marked 'Navy Arms', was clearly an early aberration and was NOT typical of the present Pedersoli product. I had a long & slightly adversarial conversation with Dick Trenk about this and he actually asked Mr Pedersoli about this early roller design since apparently he needed some confirmation. Mr Pedersoli was kind & honest enough to reveal that he was sorry that Pedersoli had ever sold any of these early Navy Arms actions. In later years I've found other Pedersoli products to be among the most accurate and well-designed of all makers and I recommend some of their products above all others including some well-respected US products. FWIW.

So my personal action choice would be: original first, Uberti second and Browning/Winchester third. The use of Badger barrels on the Browning/Winchester factory rifles would be a big factor, though, and I would expect and require a similarly-accurate barrel for any other choice.
Regards, Joe